Ballard Spahr attorney: Foreclosure-litigation risk remains

Mortgage-related litigation increased 15% in 2012 when compared to year earlier levels, according to Mortgage Daily's latest mortgage litigation report.

Ballard Spahr attorney Christopher Willis added that litigation risk is likely to remain high in the foreclosure category for the foreseeable future.

Sponsor Content

Willis cites data from Mortgage Daily’s Fourth Quarter 2012 Litigation Index, which shows 934 mortgage litigation cases recorded last year. In the final two quarters of 2012, activity levels died down.

Still, Willis says in a new white paper that the “current magnitude of mortgage litigation is still higher than any of the litigation numbers recorded between 2007” and the third quarter of 2011.

And six of the highest total litigation figures were recorded in just the past six quarters.

"The data suggests that foreclosure activity is converting into litigation at a higher rate than previously existed, and we suspect that the accumulated weight of continued publicity, governmental enforcement actions, and evolving theories of liability for mortgage servicers are all contributing to this trend," Willis wrote.

"This means that, even though mortgage delinquencies and foreclosure numbers are moving in a lower direction, the level of foreclosure- and delinquency-spawned litigation may continue to persist at its current high levels," he added.

Related Articles

Articles written by HousingWire Staff are non-bylined, and typically involve press release coverage and aggregation of coverage appearing elsewhere. So who put all these together? Our entire staff does!

This month inHousingWire magazine

Each Vanguard excels in a wide range of skill sets but all share one common trait: the ability to lead, motivate and inspire their employees. Each of them are more than capable leaders that utilize their resources to solve problems, create solutions and drive innovation in their respective areas in the industry.

Feature

The next step to the advancement of digital mortgages lies with utilization of blockchain technology. This nascent technology will take all these measures and truly transform the industry from paper to digital, resulting in transparency, better data security and higher revenues from operational efficiencies.

Commentary

Housing affordability is a crucial ingredient in any thriving community. And yet, in cities and towns across the country, there is a growing recognition that truly “sustainable communities” can be created only when multiple forces come into play. The cost of a home is only one of those factors.